Out of many celebrity-filled parties throughout F1 weekend for Miami’s inaugural Formula One Grand Prix race, one bash drew quite the list of notable attendees.
On May 6, David Beckham, Dwyane Wade, Gabrielle Union, Derek Jeter, Hannah Jeter, David Fizdale, Michael Bay, Larsa Pippen, James Corden, Damon Idris, Venus Williams, Serena Williams, Genie Bouchard, Jorge and Laura Pasada and Fabolous all attended American Express presents CARBONE BEACH “Second Course” party in partnership with The h.wood Group & Sports Illustrated, curated by Uncommon Entertainment and ABG Entertainment.
Carbone hosted a four-night beachside Miami outpost of Manhattan’s iconic Italian-American restaurant and the Friday night crowd got a truly immersive experience thanks to The h.wood Group, Uncommon Entertainment and ABG Entertainment’s involvement.
“The goal for this partnership was to bring together a high impact moment in a busy weekend full of events,” Jake Nussbaum, Cofounder of Uncommon Entertainment tells GRAZIA USA. “The ABG, h.wood and Uncommon team curated an invite list for both the private extravagant dinner as well as the exclusive afterparty. The team has a long history of executing high-profile events at a high level so we lent a helping hand to the MFG team when it came to making sure that this event went off without a hitch.”
The bash started off with a lavish cocktail hour where pianist Chloe Flower delighted guests on the grand piano. Once guests took their seats, they dined on signature Michelin-starred dishes from the restaurant prepared by Chef Mario Carbone himself.
“People were the most important thing when it came to this weekend,” Nussbaum says. “Our team wanted to bring together the best collection of athletes, celebrities, business executives, etc. into one room. Pairing that with Spicy Rigatoni from Carbone and great musical performance on South Beach. It was a night to remember.”
The already star-studded guest list grew even more prominent with LeBron James, Maverick Carter, and Rich Paul arriving mid-courses to partake in all the fun.
For Tyler Salter, Vice President, Event Development of Authentic Brands Group (ABG), seeing all-star athletes in the room was his favorite aspect of the night. “It was incredible to have so many legendary sports icons all together in one room including David Beckham, Venus and Serena Williams, LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Derek Jeter.”
For ABG, it was important to partner with best-in-class producing partners. “With the race in Miami for the first time, we wanted to make sure that the Sports Illustrated experience reflected the vibrancy and character of the city so when the opportunity came to be a part of Carbone Beach, we were all in,” says Salter.
He continues, “We worked closely with h.wood and Uncommon Entertainment to create an elevated race weekend experience that infused great food, top-notch entertainment and fashion for an unforgettable experience. We always look for ways to organically incorporate other ABG-owned brands into our experiences, and for this event, Nine West was our main fashion sponsor. The team built an ultra-chic outdoor lounge space merchandised with Nine West Miami-inspired neon heels and handbags.”
The party kept going well after the final course was served. After tables were cleared, rapper Wyclef Jean took the stage with an energetic performance, followed by DJ sets from Zack Bia and Nightowl Sound.
CoFounder of The h.wood Group, John Terzian tells GRAZIA USA an important touch was gathering the crowd for dinner and making sure the music was on point. “We made sure to have Zack Bia and Nightowl Sound as DJs,” says Terzian. “The key for us is building and being in the right environment to bring everyone in.”
Adding, “Overall, it was just really special seeing our crowd have an elaborate dinner with live music going. It is really what we do in our venues and it was special to do this for an event.”
Those who stuck around sipped on more cocktails late into the night — a sign of a successful party if there ever was one.
